WTI Magazine #15    2014 Jan, 31
Author : Vino OK      Translation by: Alessandra Bitetti

This is one of the most successful wine in the whole winery production of the Tuscan region. This red wine has a specific peculiarity: it exploits several important grapes for the "uvaggio" (a mixture of different varieties of grapes that creates a wine).

In fact, "uvaggio" is made for not less than 50 % of San Giovese grapes (this area has a tradition to farm these grapes in the Prugnolo Gentile variety); but other grapes can concur to the "uvaggio", for instance all the other ones registered and authorized in the Siena province.

Growing method

Actually, this involves the same methods used for the creation of the white Vin Santo: first of all, a careful and meticulous grapes selection has to be made; then a natural withering-phase; the vinification inside wood barrels; and finally the ageing, having the wine preserved in oak vases.

The most important differences from the wine Vin Santo are, above all, the will to comply with considerably higher quality standards, with the goal aim to obtain a strong and concentrated wine that, at the same time, can also provide an excellent elegance level.

The Vin Santo di Montepulciano Occhio di Pernice produced in the Montepulciano area is characterized by being one of the most important Tuscan wine and, probably, it could be in the first position in an hypothetical rank of the Italian dessert or meditation wines.

Organoleptic characteristics
Occhio di Pernice is characterized by a red color with intense tones that can change from amber-colored to topaz, with a characteristically red-brown nail color that changes to brown as the years go by.

Matching
Actually, only few dishes can be matched with such a quality wine: all in all, it's one of those "better not to be matched with anything" wines, but it has to be stored in a cellar and used just in case of a visit by special hosts, able to taste and appreciate the quality and the flavor of this peculiar red wine.